Rafael Nadal confirms return to training

Spanish world number two Rafael Nadal announced on Thursday that he has returned to training for the first time since suffering an injury to his left knee at last month's Miami Masters.

"Yesterday (Wednesday), I started to train on clay at the Manacor tennis club (in Mallorca), to prepare myself for the Monte-Carlo and Barcelona tournaments," Nadal posted on his Facebook page.

The Spaniard had to pull out of the Miami Masters before his scheduled semi-final against Andy Murray on March 30.

He will be looking to win the Monte-Carlo Masters for an eighth successive year when the event starts on Sunday.

Nadal has also won the Barcelona event in six of the last seven years.

The Barcelona Open will run from April 23-29.